Amblin'

Last updated

Amblin'
Amblin poster.jpg
Promotional release poster
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Written bySteven Spielberg
Produced byDenis C. Hoffman
Starring
  • Richard Levin
  • Pamela McMyler
Cinematography Allen Daviau
Edited bySteven Spielberg (uncredited)
Music by Michael Lloyd
Distributed by Sigma III Corp.
Release date
  • December 18, 1968 (1968-12-18)
Running time
26 minutes
CountryUnited States
Budget$15,000

Amblin' is a 1968 American short film written and directed by Steven Spielberg. It was Spielberg's first completed film shot on 35 mm. The film is a short love story [1] set during the hippy era of the late 1960s about a young man and woman who meet in the desert, attempt to hitchhike, become friends, then lovers, make their way to a beach, and part ways. It later became the namesake for Spielberg's production company, Amblin Entertainment.

Contents

Plot

A young man carrying a closely guarded guitar case meets a free-spirited young woman while hitchhiking across the Mojave Desert, she befriends him, then he hauls both of their luggage, they play an olive pit spitting game, she shares a cannabis joint, he becomes her lover, and they accept various rides, en route to a Pacific coast beach. At the beach the man runs, fully clothed, into the surf, and splashes about, while the woman with daisies in her hair, hesitatingly opens his guitar case and lays out its contents: a tie, wingtip shoes, Thrifty Drugs mouthwash, a paperback of Arthur C. Clarke's The City and the Stars , a white shirt, Right Guard spray deodorant, a suit, a roll of toilet paper, white crew socks, Phillips' Milk of Magnesia, and toothpaste. The woman smiles in bemusement, perhaps sensing that her companion was not the free-spirit that she assumed that he was. She frowns in sad disappointment and climbs back up the beach stairs without him.

There is no spoken dialogue in the film aside from the lyrics to the opening and closing theme song. There is an ambient soundtrack featuring bird sounds, wind, passing car noises, popping noises made by the characters, fire sounds, and laughter, along with instrumental music.

Casting

Spielberg found his lead actor Richard Levin working as a librarian in the Beverly Hills Public Library. For the mysterious redhead in the film, Spielberg discovered Pamela McMyler from the Academy Players directory. She had previously been a member of the Pasadena Playhouse and had a small role in The Boston Strangler .

Steven Spielberg as writer and director

Amblin' became a reality after Spielberg was introduced to aspiring producer Denis C. Hoffman. The movie had a $15,000 budget. In 1968, his friend Hoffman provided financing of approximately $10,000. At the time, Hoffman had no experience in producing, writing or developing motion picture projects. At Hoffman's request, the music of October Country, a band he was managing at the time, was used for the film.

In exchange for the financing provided by Hoffman, Hoffman exacted from Spielberg the young filmmaker's agreement to (a) direct Amblin' for no compensation whatsoever and (b) be bound for ten years to direct any script selected by Hoffman if such a script was brought to Spielberg by Hoffman. For this second film, Spielberg was to receive the payment of $25,000 plus 5% of the profits after expenses (the so-called "1968 Amblin Contract").

No second film for Hoffman was ever made. Spielberg bought out the contract in 1977 for $30,000, but Hoffman claimed the buyout was invalid and sued Spielberg in 1995 for $33 million. [2] The matter was settled out of court.

Production

Amblin' started shooting on July 6, 1968, at Denis Hoffman's Cinefx soundstage. The filming commenced with a complicated tracking shot following a trail of matches leading to a bonfire shot in the studio in order that cinematographer Allen Daviau could control the lighting. After Cinefx and the filming of the final sequence outside Jack Palance's beach house in Malibu, the crew moved on to various desert locations around Pearblossom, California, for the remaining eight days of filming. On rough terrain and under a punishing 105-degree sun, many of Spielberg's unpaid crew left before the shoot was completed. Spielberg confessed to one crew member that he had vomited every day before he went to the set. Anne Spielberg (Steven's sister) who wrote Big also worked with him on this first effort which started his career and won him his contract at Universal.

Jerry Lewis taught a film directing class at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles for a number of years; his students included Spielberg. [3] In 1968, he screened Amblin' and told his students, "That's what filmmaking is all about." [4] In his 1971 book, The Total Film-Maker, Lewis says, "[The film] rocked me back. [Spielberg] displayed an amazing knowledge of film-making as well as creative talent." [5]

Release and impacts

Opening on December 18, 1968, at Loews Crest Theater in Los Angeles, Amblin' shared a double bill with Otto Preminger's Skidoo . Amblin' won several film festival awards including a showing at the Atlanta Film Festival in 1968 (winning the Silver Phoenix Jury prize making it Spielberg's first award for filmmaking).

This movie, only 26 minutes long, led to Spielberg becoming the youngest director ever to be signed to a long-term deal with a major Hollywood studio (Universal) after Sid Sheinberg, then the vice-president of production for Universal Television saw the film. Spielberg was signed to a 7-year contract with Universal Television.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Spielberg</span> American filmmaker (born 1946)

Steven Allan Spielberg is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director in history. He is the recipient of many accolades, including three Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and four Directors Guild of America Awards, as well as the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1995, the Kennedy Center Honor in 2006, the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2009 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015. Seven of his films have been inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant".

<i>Duel</i> (1971 film) 1971 action thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg

Duel is a 1971 American action-thriller television film directed by Steven Spielberg. It centers on a business commuter, played by Dennis Weaver, driving his car through rural California to meet a client. However, he finds himself chased and terrorized by the mostly unseen driver of a semi-truck. The screenplay by Richard Matheson adapts his own short story of the same name, published in the April 1971 issue of Playboy, and based on an encounter on November 22, 1963, when a trucker dangerously cut him off on a California freeway.

<i>Hook</i> (film) 1991 American fantasy film by Steven Spielberg

Hook is a 1991 American fantasy adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by James V. Hart and Malia Scotch Marmo. It stars Robin Williams as Peter Banning / Peter Pan, Dustin Hoffman as Captain Hook, Julia Roberts as Tinker Bell, Bob Hoskins as Mr. Smee, and Maggie Smith as Granny Wendy. It serves as a sequel to J. M. Barrie's 1911 novel Peter and Wendy, focusing on an adult Peter Pan who has forgotten his childhood. In his new life, he is known as Peter Banning, a successful but unimaginative and workaholic lawyer with a wife and two children. However, when his old archenemy Captain Hook kidnaps his children, he returns to Neverland to save them. Along the journey, he reclaims the memories of his past and becomes a better person.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathleen Kennedy (producer)</span> American film producer (born 1953)

Kathleen Kennedy is an American film producer and president of Lucasfilm. In 1981, she co-founded the production company Amblin Entertainment with Steven Spielberg and her eventual husband Frank Marshall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amblin Entertainment</span> American film production company

Amblin Entertainment, Inc., formerly named Amblin Productions and Steven Spielberg Productions, is an American film production company founded by director and producer Steven Spielberg, and film producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall in 1980. Its headquarters are located in Bungalow 477 of the Universal Studios backlot in Universal City, California. It distributes all of the films from Amblin Partners under the Amblin Entertainment banner.

<i>The Land Before Time</i> (film) 1988 animated adventure film directed by Don Bluth

The Land Before Time is a 1988 animated adventure drama film directed and produced by Don Bluth from a screenplay by Stu Krieger and a story by Judy Freudberg and Tony Geiss, and executive produced by Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Kathleen Kennedy, and Frank Marshall. The film stars the voices of Gabriel Damon, Candace Hutson, Judith Barsi and Will Ryan with narration provided by Pat Hingle. It is the first film in The Land Before Time franchise.

<i>1941</i> (film) 1979 film by Steven Spielberg

1941 is a 1979 American war comedy film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale. The film stars an ensemble cast including Dan Aykroyd, Ned Beatty, John Belushi, John Candy, Christopher Lee, Tim Matheson, Toshiro Mifune, Robert Stack, Nancy Allen, and Mickey Rourke in his film debut. The story involves a panic in the Los Angeles area after the December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

<i>An American Tail: Fievel Goes West</i> 1991 animated film directed by Phil Nibbelink

An American Tail: Fievel Goes West is a 1991 American animated Western comedy film directed by Phil Nibbelink and Simon Wells, with producer Steven Spielberg for Amblin Entertainment and animated by his Amblimation animation studio and released by Universal Pictures. A sequel to 1986's An American Tail, the film follows the story of the Mousekewitzes, a family of Russian-Jewish mice who emigrate to the Wild West. In it, Fievel is separated from his family as the train approaches the American Old West; the film chronicles him and Sheriff Wylie Burp teaching Tiger how to act like a dog.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amblimation</span> British animation production subsidiary of Amblin Entertainment

Amblimation was the British animation production subsidiary of Amblin Entertainment. It was formed by Steven Spielberg in May 1989, following the success of Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), and after he parted ways with Don Bluth, due to creative differences. It was stationed in what was originally the D. Napier & Son factory in Acton, London and had 250 crew members from 15 different nations. It only produced three feature films: An American Tail: Fievel Goes West (1991), We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story (1993), and Balto (1995), all three of which were composed by James Horner and distributed by Universal Pictures. The company's mascot, Fievel Mousekewitz, appears in its production logo.

<i>Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation</i> 1992 American animated film

Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation is a 1992 American animated comedy film from Warner Bros. Animation and Amblin Entertainment, originally intended for theatrical exhibition. Featuring the regular characters from the Fox Kids animated television program Tiny Toon Adventures, the plot follows their summer vacation from school, mainly focused on Babs and Buster going downriver, Plucky and Hamton going to a world-famous amusement park, and Fifi in search of her favorite movie star.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Spielberg filmography</span> Filmography of American filmmaker Steven Spielberg

Steven Spielberg is an American director, writer, and producer. He is considered one of the founding pioneers of the New Hollywood era, as well as one of the most popular directors and producers in film history. He is also one of the co-founders of Amblin Entertainment, DreamWorks Pictures, and DreamWorks Animation.

<i>Poltergeist</i> (1982 film) 1982 American supernatural horror film directed by Tobe Hooper

Poltergeist is a 1982 American supernatural horror film directed by Tobe Hooper and written by Steven Spielberg, Michael Grais and Mark Victor from a story by Spielberg. It stars JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson and Beatrice Straight, and was produced by Spielberg and Frank Marshall. The film focuses on a suburban family whose home is invaded by malevolent ghosts that abduct their youngest daughter.

Wilmer Cable Butler was an American cinematographer who was known for his work on The Conversation (1974), Jaws (1975), and three Rocky sequels. Butler also completed One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) after Haskell Wexler was fired from the production, and was subsequently nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography.

"24 Hours" is the pilot episode of the medical drama series ER. It first aired on NBC in the United States on September 19, 1994. The episode was written by Michael Crichton, adapted from a screenplay he originally wrote in 1974, and directed by Rod Holcomb. The episode was a critical and commercial success, receveid both high rating and very favorable critics reactions.

DreamWorks Pictures is an American film studio and distribution label of Amblin Partners. It was originally founded on October 12, 1994 as a live-action film studio by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and David Geffen, of which they owned 72%. The studio formerly distributed its own and third-party films. It has produced or distributed more than ten films with box-office grosses of more than $100 million each.

<i>Savage</i> (1973 TV film) American TV series or program

Savage is a 1973 American thriller-drama television pilot directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Martin Landau. It was not picked up as a series and has been referred to as a standalone made-for-television film.

Amblin Partners American entertainment company

Storyteller Distribution Co., LLC, doing business as Amblin Partners, LLC., is an American entertainment production company. It develops and produces films under the Amblin Entertainment and DreamWorks Pictures banners, as well as television series through Amblin Television. The company's investment partners include Reliance Group's Reliance Entertainment, Lionsgate's Entertainment One, Alibaba Group's Alibaba Pictures, and NBCUniversal/Comcast's Universal Pictures. Films produced by Amblin Partners are primarily distributed by Universal in North America and select international territories, and by third-party distributors through Mister Smith Entertainment or Good Universe in other countries.

<i>Night Gallery</i> (film) 1969 television film directed by Boris Sagal

Night Gallery is a 1969 American made-for-television anthology supernatural horror film starring Joan Crawford, Roddy McDowall and Richard Kiley. Directed by Boris Sagal, Steven Spielberg and Barry Shear, the film consists of three supernatural tales that served as the pilot for the anthology television series of the same name, written and hosted by Rod Serling. Serling garnered the Edgar Award for Best TV Episode for this effort. The film originally premiered on NBC on November 8, 1969.

<i>The Fabelmans</i> 2022 film by Steven Spielberg

The Fabelmans is a 2022 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Steven Spielberg, who co-wrote and produced it with Tony Kushner. The film is a semi-autobiographical story loosely based on Spielberg's adolescence and first years as a filmmaker. The plot is told through an original story of the fictional Sammy Fabelman, a young aspiring filmmaker who explores how the power of films can help him see the truth about his dysfunctional family and those around him. It stars Gabriel LaBelle as Sammy, alongside Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, and Judd Hirsch in supporting roles. The film is dedicated to the memories of Spielberg's real-life parents, Leah Adler and Arnold Spielberg, who died in 2017 and 2020, respectively.

References

  1. Spielberg on Spielberg (documentary film). 2007.
  2. Bates, James (October 25, 1995). "Spielberg Suing Investor Who Backed His 1st Film in 1968". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  3. Jerry Lewis: TV Guide Biography
  4. Joseph McBride (1997). Steven Spielberg – A Biography. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 168. ISBN   978-1-60473-836-0.
  5. Jerry Lewis The Total Film-Maker, Random House, 1971